Typhoon Yagi has left a widening trail of destruction across mainland Southeast Asia, with Thai authorities reporting at least ten deaths from flooding and landslides and Myanmar’s military junta saying at least 33 people have been killed there.
The storm has battered Vietnam, Myanmar and Thailand with torrential rain and dangerous flooding, while emergency teams continue searching for the missing and clearing damaged areas. In Vietnam, the death toll has risen sharply, and local officials are still trying to account for people who were swept away or left unreachable after sudden inundation and landslides in the country’s north.
The disaster is now affecting millions of people across the region. In Thailand, authorities said the worst flooding in years has forced people from their homes and prompted fresh warnings of flash flooding as more rain threatened to swell rivers further. Flights to and from Chiang Rai airport were suspended, a sign of how widely the storm has disrupted transport and daily life in the country’s north.
Myanmar is facing a particular burden because the floods have hit a country already exhausted by conflict and displacement. The junta said more than 235,000 people have been forced from their homes. Around 50 camps have been set up to provide help to flood-hit communities, according to a junta official cited by AFP. Even so, roads remain impassable in some areas, slowing rescue efforts and complicating the delivery of aid.
The death tolls in Thailand and Myanmar are only part of a much larger regional emergency. DW reported that the storm had already pushed the overall death toll across Vietnam, Myanmar and Thailand beyond 300. In Vietnam, most of the fatalities have been concentrated in the north, including around Lao Cai, where a flash flood engulfed the mountain hamlet of Lang Nu. Rescue workers are still searching for dozens of missing people there and elsewhere.
The impact extends beyond immediate loss of life. UNICEF said hundreds of thousands of children have lost their homes and millions have been cut off from education, psychosocial support and school meals. The agency warned the number of schools and students affected was likely higher than current counts.
The floods are also deepening a humanitarian crisis in Myanmar, where the storm has collided with years of war and displacement. The United Nations has warned that the country’s battered infrastructure, combined with ongoing conflict, leaves many people especially vulnerable when heavy rainfall turns quickly into mass flooding.
For Thailand and Myanmar, the immediate challenge is still rescue, shelter and damage control. But with more extreme weather expected, officials across the region are now facing the prospect of a second wave of harm even as first responders continue the work of reaching isolated communities and counting the dead.
